Baseball legend Steve Garvey eyes GOP Senate bid in California

LOS ANGELES — You’d have to return a technology – to 1988 – to search out the final time a Republican candidate gained a U.S. Senate race in closely Democratic California. This time, the social gathering may get an MVP on the poll.

Baseball legend Steve Garvey, who performed for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, is assembly with voters and senior GOP officers as he weighs a possible 2024 Senate bid in a race that already has a number of outstanding Democratic contenders within the area. He appeared at a latest fundraiser for Republican Rep. Michelle Steel in Orange County, the place he signed baseballs and talked about his potential candidacy.

“He is seriously considering entering the race,” mentioned veteran advisor Andy Gharakhani, who’s advising Garvey.

The 74-year-old Garvey had an 18-year main league profession. He was National League MVP in 1974 and retired from baseball in 1987.

Garvey has flirted with the opportunity of coming into politics earlier than, together with after his retirement from baseball, when he teased a potential U.S. Senate run however by no means grew to become a candidate.

“I have been approached to run for office and am exploring that. No announcement is imminent,” Garvey mentioned in an announcement launched by a Dodgers workforce spokesperson.

Garvey’s candidacy would reorder a rising area that already consists of Democratic Reps. Katie Porter, Adam Schiff and Barbara Lee. The seat is held by Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who has introduced she just isn’t looking for one other time period.

Still, even along with his celeb sparkle, Garvey would enter the race as an underdog. Democrats maintain each statewide workplace and dominate the legislative and congressional delegations. Republicans – who’re outnumbered about 2-to-1 by Democratic voters within the state – have struggled for years to search out candidates for high places of work.

In the state’s final two U.S. Senate races, GOP candidates carried out so poorly within the main elections that solely Democrats superior to the November poll. Garvey’s candidacy might give the GOP an opportunity to make the November election, probably lifting social gathering turnout and likewise serving to down-ballot GOP candidates.

In latest election cycles, California Republicans have focused criticism on the state’s Democratic-dominated authorities, faulting the rival social gathering for notoriously excessive taxes, a homeless disaster, rising crime charges in cities and housing costs which can be out of attain for a lot of working-class households.

Republican lawyer Eric Early – an unsuccessful candidate for state lawyer common in 2022 and 2018 and for Congress in 2020 – entered the Senate contest in April. He has mentioned he’ll marketing campaign for the votes of “forgotten” Californians and towards what he referred to as “far-left” ideology creeping into authorities.

“I think Steve Garvey would be one of the most interesting and dynamic candidates for a statewide office Republicans have had in decades,” mentioned Republican National Committeeman Shawn Steel, who’s married to the congresswoman.

“He’s good on the stump … and he reminds me of a Reagan-esque approach,” Steel added, referring to former Republican President Ronald Reagan, one other Californian.